For
Tuesday, October
8,
2024:
Psalm
100:1
ESV:
“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all
the earth!”
We
continue our discussion of worship today.
The
question often comes up concerning in which key the song should be
sung. The key doesn’t matter as much as the range of the melody.
If we’re asking people to sing along, as worship leaders we need to
make sure
that’s
possible!
Churches
missed the boat on this one for years! Hymnals are written SATB –
soprano, alto, tenor and bass. The soprano melody would be too high
for most people to sing. And most of the congregation doesn’t
actually read music, so the harmony parts don’t count for much.
Nowadays, most of us use contemporary worship music, so let’s look
at that.
Most
women will prefer an alto range. Soprano gets way too high for most,
just as second alto is far too low.
Similarly,
male voices prefer a baritone range, not a high tenor or a basement
bass.
If
we look at a treble clef staff (with men singing an octave lower),
there’s
really only one good octave of singable notes for everyone, from Bb
to Bb. Below that, many people bottom out of range. Above that, women
switch from chest voice to head voice, which is like falsetto for
men. The tone can change drastically, and some women simply can’t
go there. Most men can sing a bit higher, but they’re pushing, kind
of shouting, which works for a lead singer on stage. But most men in
a congregation won’t sing that hard.
It
matters not if a male or female is leading the song on the platform.
It deserves to be in a congregation-singable key.
Settle
on musician-friendly keys. Move
things a half-step up
or down
if it makes sense. For
example, B major has 5 sharps, which is just asking for mistakes.
A
half-step up would be C, a key with no sharps or flats and can be
played in first position on a guitar.
Down
a half-step would be Bb, the most common key if you have a horn
section.
Try
to simplify things so everyone on your team can easily
do
their best.
I’ve
noticed a lot of songs lately that start with the singer croaking out
low tones in the basement range, barely able to sing.
Then
later the melody jumps up an octave, which sounds great and adds
energy to the performance.
I
really like that, but I’m not a fan of the ragged performance at
the beginning. Just
my opinion. Not
only can’t the singers sing it very
well that
way, but the congregation doesn’t stand a chance!
God
gave each of us unique gifts and talents. Recognize that your talents
may be different from the next person’s. So it’s not
only OK,
but
also a good idea
to adjust things to fit your team’s
skills.
That’s
good leadership. When
we offered our personal services to our worship teams,
none of us signed up to join a Chris Tomlin cover band. (Insert name
of your favorite Christian group.) We each have our own level of
talent, our own style and our own personality. So
let
YOUR
gifts shine through, so that your worship team can
be
the best that
it
can be!
Put
your God-given resources to use! A little more
on worship tomorrow!
Pastor
Norton Lawellin
Jesus
In the City Fellowship
